#chief winchley

[atomic-chronoscaph]

Squiddly Diddly (1965)

[sohannabarberaesque]

Just imagine these fanfic possibilities

Fred Flintstone and Barney Rubble, during their weekend soak at the hot springs outside Bedrock, including some bonding-type frottage as part of the routine to make things feel livelier and release more of their inner tensions....

Given the almost-constant water temperatures close to 65 degrees of the nearby river, Maw Rugg and her son Shag are practically able to have their underwater breast-feeding bonding exercises and swimming lessons practically through the chill of the winter months....

Penelope Pitstop perhaps being rather right to sense that her Wacky Races rival Peter Perfect is nothing but a boorish jerk and a showoff, rivalled in sheer attention-seeking crudity only by Dick Dastardly....

Jane Jetson being the sort to deploy bluescreen to assist in computer-aided dress modelling as part of the space-age fondness for "fast fashion," and then more or less for fun when she senses such may really be a boorish waste....

Mr. Peebles collapsing spontaneously after yet another failed attempt to offer Magilla Gorilla as a housepet ends in buyer's remorse yet again, requiring Peebles to be in hospital for some time and Magilla to be even more adventurous in the brave new world out there....

Imagine the possibility of Mr. Peebles and Chief Winchley, the manager and emcee at Bubbleland, being Most Unlikely Cousins considering their common dread of certain animals in their charge (respectively, Magilla Gorilla and Squiddly Diddly), and the potential for Reputational Harm and Injury subsequently ensuing....

During one of Top Cat's clowder's first dive sessions off Catalina with the Catalina Diving Clowder, Brain couldn't help but sense some serious arousal underwater, which amused the diver queens of The Magic Isle all the more as much as fascinated Brain "himself"....

[nerds-yearbook]

Appendix: Some of the Fantasy/Sci Fi/etc roles of John Stephenson

Dr Brewster/Phil Coulson/Police Inspector Mark Davis - Science Fiction Theatre (1955 - 56)

Dr Benton Quest - Johnny Quest (1964 - 1965)

Varner - Man From U.N.C.L.E. (1965)

Narrator - The Atom Ant Show (1965)

Get Smart - Parkerson (1965)

Colonel Fusby - The Peter Potamus Show (1964 - 66)

Chief Winchley - The Secret Squirrel Show (1965 - 66)

Professor Conroy - Frankenstein Jr and the Impossibles (1966 - 67)

Native - Galaxy Trio (1967)

Chief Winchley - Atom Ant/Secret Squirrel Show (1967)

Pondo - Mighty Dick and the Mighty Mightor (1967)

John Niven - The Invaders (1967)

Various voices - Birdman (1967 - 68)

Luke - Wacky Races (1968 - 69)

Farlik - Arabian Knights (1968 - 69)

Captain Leech - The Adventures of Gulliver (1968 - 69)

Captain Nemo - Josie and the Pussycats (1970)

Cat - Adventures of Pinocchio (1971)

Parafiend - The Funky Phantom (1971 - 72)

Director - Mission Impossible (1972)

Moton - Josie and the Pussy Cats in Outer Space (1972)

Captain Mike Murphy - Sealab 2020 (1972)

Mr Arable - Charlotte's Web (1973)

Voices - Goober and the Ghost Chasers (1973)

Voices - The New Scooby Doo Movies (1972 - 73)

Mr Finkerton - Inch High Private Eye (1973)

King Plasto - The Super Friends (1973)

Hadji - Jeanie (1973)

Voices - Speed Buggy (1973)

Cousin Itt - The Addams Family cartoon (1973)

Second Team Lawyer - Herbie Rides Again (1974)

Major General - Six Million Dollar Man (1974)

Trash Collector - Patridge Family 2200 AD (1974)

Voices - Dynomutt Dog Wonder (1976)

Voices - 5 Weeks in a Balloon (1977)

Dori - The Hobbit (1977)

Voices - Marvel Action Universe (1977)

Voices - The Scooby Doo Show (1978)

Voices - Fangface (1978)

Captain Snerdley & General Blowhard - Yogi's Space Race (1978)

Captain Snerdly - Galaxy Goof-Ups (1978)

Voices - Scooby Doo Where Are You (1969 - 78)

Doctor Doom - Fantastic Four (1978)

Voices - Scooby Doo/Dynomutt Hour (1976 - 78)

Count Rockula - The Flintstones Meet Rockula and Frankenstone (1979)

Hairy Scary - Casper the Friendly Ghost: Heavy Ain't Scary He's Our Brother (1979)

King Brobdingnag - Gulliver's Travels (1979)

Professor Harkness - Fred and Barney Meet the Thing (1979)

Harry Scary - Casper and the Angels (1979)

Hairy Scary - Casper's First Christmas (1979)

Gondorian Guard - Return of the King (1980)

Voices - Captain Caveman and the Teen Angels (1977 - 1980)

Frank Frankenstein - The Flintstones' New Neighbors (1980)

Voices - Plastic Man (1979 - 1980)

Narrator - The Drak Pack (1980)

Frank Frankenstein - Flintstones: Wind-Up Wilma (1981)

Frank Frankenstein - Flintstones: Jogging Fever (1981)

Frank Frankenstein - Flintstones: Fred's Final Fling (1981)

Voices - Richie Rich/Scooby Doo Show (1980 - 81)

Voices - Space Stars (1981)

Voices - Trollkins (1981)

Dr Norton - Spider-Man (1981 - 82)

Voices - Scooby and Scrappy-Doo Puppy Hour (1982)

Ski Announcer - Inspector Gadget (1983)

General Flagg - G.I. Joe RAH: The MASS Device (1983)

Voices - The Incredible Hulk (1982 - 83)

Voices - The New Scooby and Scrappy-Doo Show (1983)

Colossus - Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends (1981 - 83)

Voices - The Littles (1983)

Voices - Scooby-Doo and Scrappy Doo (1979 - 83)

Voices - Rubik, The Amazing Cube (1983)

Doctor Doolittle - The Voyages of Doctor Doolittle (1984)

Voices - The New Scooby-Doo Mysteries (1984)

Doctor Fury - Robo Force: The Revenge of Nasgar (1984)

Boris Kreepoff - The 13 Ghosts of Scooby-Doo (1985)

Voices - Scooby's Mystery Funhouse (1985 - 86)

Kup - Transformers: Five Faces of Darkness (1986)

Dr Lucifer, Gen Flagg, Gen Franks, Gen Hawk, MacIntosh - G.I. Joe (1985 - 86)

Beef Bonk - Galaxy High School (1986)

Voices - Centurions (1986)

Granok - InHumanoids (1986)

Granok - InHumanoids: The Movie (1986)

Voices - The Smurfs (1981 - 87)

Commissioner - The Jetsons (1985 - 87)

Thundercracker - The Transformers (1984 - 1987)

Bionic 1 - Bionic Six (1987)

Mr Slate - The Jetsons Meet the Flintstones (1987)

Doc - Fraggle Rock cartoon (1987)

Voices - Superman (1988)

Oompo - Little Nemo: Adventures in Slumberland (1989)

Professor Charles Xavier - Pryde of the X-Men (1989)

Voices - Fantastic Max (1988 - 89)

Jeffers Marston - The Real Ghostbusters (1990)

Voices - A Pup Named Scooby-Doo (1988 - 91)

Major Synapse - Darkwing Duck (1991)

Voices - Spacecats (1991)

Voices - Aahh!!! Real Monsters (1995)

Luke - Wacky Races (2000)

Voices - Scooby-Doo Winter Wonderdog (2002)

Ganthet - Duck Dodgers (2003)

Zelig - What's New Scooby-Doo (2003 - 04)

Sheriff - Scooby-Doo! Abracadabra-Doo (2009)

Voices - Scooby-Doo and the Robots (2011)

Voices - Scooby-Doo Laff-A-Lympics Scary Games (2012)

Voices - Scooby-Doo 13 Spooky Tales Holiday Chills and Thrills (2012)

Roger - Scooby-Doo Frankencreepy (2014)

This is just a glimpse as he had an incredibly large body of film, tv, and voice work, including providing the voice of Mr. Slate in numerous versions of the Flintstones. He worked into almost his 90's.

[summer-solo-day]

35/?? Childhood TV Shows You Should Watch

Title: Squiddly Diddly

Seasons: 2

Episodes: 26

Original Air Date: October 2, 1965 - October 15, 1966

Synopsis:

Squiddly is kept captive in an aquatic park known as Bubbleland and resides in a pool with his name on it. Squiddly Diddly is an aspiring musician and entertainer who makes many attempts to escape and attain musical stardom, but he is constantly foiled by Bubbleland's administrator Chief Winchley. In some episodes, Squiddly Diddly manages to escape but chooses to return to Bubbleland after finding the outside world to be too harsh. Other times Squiddly and Chief Winchley would have to work together to solve problems in Bubbleland. The cartoons show people applauding Squiddly Diddly's musical talents but often depict terrified people who mistakenly believe that octopuses are hostile.

My Rating: 7/10

My Reasoning:

Oh, how I loved Squiddly. Something about him was just so endearing and likable. It's sad that he never actually got to be a famous musician like he wanted but you know it's a cartoon so....

Squiddly just always seemed like such a wholesome character to me. (from what I remember anyway). I must admit like with most short Hanna Barbera cartoons, it's not got a whole lot going on complexity-wise. It's got simple plot points and humor, and the characters are usually one-dimensional as with most of their cartoons. That being said, I still thoroughly enjoyed this cartoon and I think you would too.

[cartonionline]

Squiddly Diddly - Tentacolino

Ah, Squiddly Diddly! Un vero tuffo nel passato per chi, come me, ha vissuto gli anni '80 attaccato allo schermo a guardare i cartoni animati di Hanna-Barbera. Squiddly Diddly, che in Italia abbiamo conosciuto come Tentacolino, è uno di quei personaggi che a molti potrebbe sfuggire a primo impatto, ma che chi ha avuto la fortuna di crescere guardando Ciao Ciao non dimentica facilmente. Tentacolino era un calamaro antropomorfo – o meglio, somigliava più a un polpo con il suo simpatico cappellino da marinaio e solo sei tentacoli – che viveva nel parco acquatico di Bubbleland, cercando sempre di sfuggire dalla monotonia della sua prigionia. Era un personaggio che, come tanti di noi, sognava in grande. Il suo grande desiderio? Diventare una star della musica! Tentava continuamente di fuggire per trovare il suo posto nel mondo, ma il burbero Capo Winchley, l’amministratore del parco, era sempre lì pronto a riportarlo in riga. Ogni episodio era una piccola avventura, dove Tentacolino provava a inseguire i suoi sogni, spesso con risultati disastrosi, ma sempre con un sorriso. Era buffo perché, ogni volta che riusciva a scappare, si trovava ad affrontare un mondo esterno che non era esattamente come lo immaginava. E, alla fine, finiva sempre per tornare a Bubbleland, a dimostrazione che a volte i sogni più grandi non sono così semplici da realizzare.

Ciò che rendeva Squiddly Diddly così speciale era proprio questa combinazione di umorismo slapstick e un pizzico di malinconia. Tentacolino era amato per la sua musica – spesso lo vedevamo intrattenere con la sua band improvvisata – ma allo stesso tempo era temuto per via della sua natura di "polpo", una creatura marina che molti trovavano spaventosa. Una metafora, forse, di come a volte ci sentiamo incompresi, nonostante i nostri talenti. Ricordo con affetto come le sue disavventure fossero sempre accompagnate da una colonna sonora allegra e orecchiabile, composta da Ted Nichols, che ti restava in testa per ore. In più, Tentacolino era parte di un pacchetto di serie animate che includeva anche Secret Squirrel e L'amabile strega, quindi guardare questi episodi era come avere un'intera ora di divertimento non-stop. In Italia, la serie è andata in onda su Ciao Ciao a partire dal novembre del 1980, e anche se gli episodi duravano solo sette minuti, erano abbastanza per strapparti un sorriso e farti dimenticare per un attimo le preoccupazioni della giornata. Quei brevi minuti erano un vero e proprio viaggio in un mondo di fantasia dove tutto sembrava possibile, almeno per Tentacolino… fino al prossimo incontro con il Capo Winchley! Anche se non è diventato uno dei personaggi di punta della Hanna-Barbera, Squiddly Diddly ha comunque lasciato il segno nei cuori di chi lo ha seguito. E come dimenticarlo? Ogni tentacolo era un simbolo di speranza, una speranza che ci ricordava di non mollare mai i nostri sogni, anche quando il mondo ci mette i bastoni tra le ruote… o, nel caso di Tentacolino, tra i tentacoli!

Sinossi degli episodi di Squiddly Diddly:

Stagione 1 (1965–66) - Way Out Squiddly (2 ottobre 1965) Due alieni rapiscono Squiddly e lo portano in un'avventura selvaggia a bordo della loro astronave. - Show Biz Squid (9 ottobre 1965) Squiddly, oscurato dai delfini, decide di lasciare Bubbleland per cercare la celebrità nel mondo dello spettacolo. - The Canvas Back Squid (16 ottobre 1965) Squiddly viene assunto come sostituto per un lottatore professionista. - Nervous Service (23 ottobre 1965) Squiddly viene arruolato per errore nella Marina. - Westward Ha! (30 ottobre 1965) Squiddly si reca nel selvaggio West per imitare i suoi show western preferiti. - Sea Grunt (6 novembre 1965) Squiddly viene scelto come protagonista in una serie televisiva. - Chief Cook and Bottle Washer (13 novembre 1965) Sopraffatto dalle faccende, Squiddly fugge per unirsi ai pirati. - Squid on the Skids (20 novembre 1965) Squiddly tenta di corteggiare una calamaro femmina. - Double Trouble (27 novembre 1965) Squiddly diventa improvvisamente popolare a una festa in maschera. - Squid Kid (4 dicembre 1965) Un ragazzino porta Squiddly a casa come "animale domestico". - Booty and the Beast (11 dicembre 1965) Squiddly e Winchley partono alla ricerca di un tesoro nascosto. - Clowning Around (18 dicembre 1965) Squiddly scappa e si unisce a un circo. - Surprise Prize (25 dicembre 1965) Squiddly e Winchley finiscono su un'isola, dove Squiddly viene venerato come un dio. - Naughty Astronaut (1 gennaio 1966) Scambiato per un alieno, Squiddly viene inseguito dall'esercito. - The Ghost Is Clear (8 gennaio 1966) Squiddly deve fare da babysitter a un giovane fantasma di nome Wilbur. - Lucky Ducky (15 gennaio 1966) Un'anatra della Tasmania arriva a Bubbleland e tenta di convincere Squiddly a cedergli la sua vasca. - Foxy Seal (22 gennaio 1966) Dopo essere stato ingannato da Slippery Seal, Squiddly aiuta a proteggere una volpe dalla caccia. - Squiddly Double Diddly (29 gennaio 1966) Un agente straniero sostituisce Squiddly per rubare i progetti segreti di Bubbleland. - Hollywood Folly (5 febbraio 1966) Squiddly parte per Hollywood con l'aspirazione di diventare una star. - One Black Knight (12 febbraio 1966) Squiddly eredita un castello infestato dal fantasma del Cavaliere Nero. Stagione 2 (1966) - Yo Ho Ho (10 settembre 1966) Squiddly trova una macchina del tempo e viaggia nell'epoca dei pirati al tempo del Capitano Kidney. - Phoney Fish (17 settembre 1966) Due criminali, Knuckles e Tiny, si travestono da pesci per rapinare la biglietteria di Bubbleland. - Gnatman (24 settembre 1966) Squiddly e il capo Winchley si travestono entrambi da supereroe Gnatman per combattere il crimine. - Robot Squid (1 ottobre 1966) Winchley sostituisce Squiddly con una versione robotica. - Jewel Finger (8 ottobre 1966) Squiddly ingoia accidentalmente una collana di perle rubata da un ladro nascosto a Bubbleland. - Baby Squidder (15 ottobre 1966) Squiddly deve proteggere un bambino avventuroso e tenerlo al sicuro.

Dati tecnici

Ecco i dati tecnici per la serie animata Squiddly Diddly: - Lingua originale: inglese - Paese: Stati Uniti - Autori: William Hanna, Joseph Barbera - Regia: William Hanna, Joseph Barbera - Produttori: William Hanna, Joseph Barbera - Musiche: Ted Nichols - Studio: Hanna-Barbera Productions - Rete originale: NBC - Prima TV (USA): 2 ottobre 1965 – 15 ottobre 1966 - Stagioni: 2 - Episodi: 26 (serie completa) - Rapporto: 4:3 - Durata episodio: 7 minuti - Rete italiana: Ciao Ciao - Prima TV italiana: 20 novembre 1980 Altri cartoni animati di Hanna e Barbera Altri cartoni animati degli anni 60 Guarda i video di Squiddy su Youtube Read the full article

[sohannabarberaesque]

No wonder Bubbleland was starting to seriously go downhill, even without the antics of Squiddly Diddly to gum things up and give Chief Winchley migraines on an almost constant basis.

[sohannabarberaesque]

Postcards from Snagglepuss

One dolphin swim for the sake of memory

AT AN UNDISCLOSED LOCATION SOMEWHERE IN THE BAHAMAS: Peter Potamus, freediver extraordinaire, can relate plenty of memorable tales about experiences in the uncharted reaches of Polynesia, and in a rather likable sort of way.

Especially when it comes to dolphins, and swimming along with them.

One especially memorable and yet fascinating exercise in this respect (naked, naturally, and with a wonderful-looking Polynesian native in tow, obviously) was lead-in to an especially fascinating sort of dolphin swim that the Peter Potamus Magic Divers, as well as his guests of no less than yours truly, Huckleberry Hound and the Hair Bear Bunch, fell practically head over heels for at some remote part of the Bahamas group.

And to imagine no less than 15 divers in the company of some especially playful dolphins in Bahamanian waters has certainly got to be one for stirring the senses ... after all, much has been studied and written about the sheer intellect, grace and beauty of dolphins, not to mention where many such, going back to Ancient Greece even, have had close friendships with humans such as can be especially memorable!

It just seemed as if our cetacean companions and compadres couldn't help but want to make us feel welcome in some especially fabulous, almost primeval even, coral reefs as seem untouched to the point of utterly fantastic ... especially the lupine members of our dive company, as in Loopy De Loop, Hokey Wolf and Mildew Wolf, who for some reason had an especially memorable sort of experience with dolphinkind, in particular that self-appointed "good wolf" seeking to challenge conventional stereotypes and myths about wolves, only to fail all too often!

Who could guess how Lippy the Lion and Breezly Bruin especially had been approached by certain dolphins of this pod as joined in our escapade, getting some gentle nuzzling of their necks with the dolphins' beaks, and feeling rather delighted, perhaps to the point of hearing slight giggles underwater as dolphin affection became all the more obvious with our dive crew?

But leave it, more or less, to Squiddly Diddly, our videographer in these exploits, to as much capture the awe and fascination of wild dolphins crossing paths with us divers as relate sheer contrast to how Bubbleland treated its dolphins back in the day ("Nothing less than objects of show, doing much the same hokey drills for what passed as 'performances' to amuse the visitors from Iowa! And just faking their delight and satisfaction; still, though, it may have been more or less the times when I was at Bubbleland under Chief Winchley explaining such thought towards dolphins...."). Still, you have to hand it to Squiddly to sense what real interaction unto a real dolphin in the wild waters of the Caribbean must be like ... and it must have felt like love, come to think of it!

The very sight even amazing the Hair Bear Bunch, come to think of it!

Still, a great experience was had by all ... and just a heads up: For the sake of the Christmas holiday, there will be no postcard next Monday, which happens to be Christmas Day this year. But look for one next week instead at this time.

*************

@warnerbrosentertainment @joey-gatorman @funtasticworld @xdiver71 @theweekenddigest @archive-archives @thylordshipofbutts @themineralyoucrave @screamingtoosoftly @thebigdingle @warnerbros-blog1 @jellystone-enjoyer @iheartgod175 @groovybribri @indigo-corvus @warnerbrosent-blog

[sohannabarberaesque]

Squiddly Diddly headcannon

Imagine what exactly Chief Winchley's intentions were at Bubbleland for Squiddly Diddly to begin with, particularly in the performance arena alongside killer whales and dolphins; was it any wonder that he was prone to escaping into The Outside every so often?

[sohannabarberaesque]

Postcards from Snagglepuss

And so the journey continues

The scene: A parking lot off the junction of Ocean Parkway (Maryland 528) and US 50 in Ocean City, Maryland. Huckleberry Hound is taking roll:

"Yogi Bear--?"

"Smarter than the average ..."

"Boo-Boo--?"

"Here!"

"Magilla Gorilla--?"

"Wouldn't you know it--I made it at last!"

"I'll take it as 'present.' Wally Gator--?"

"Present and accounted for, don't you know!"

[Wally's Ed Wynnesque style certainly brought giggles to our party.]

"Squiddly Diddly--?"

"HERE!!" (And giving a salute not unlike that he was fond of giving Chief Winchley back at Bubbleland, mainly for comedic effect, as he would later explain.)

Yours truly: "Now mind you, you're part of what's bound to be a rotating cast for some road trip adventures--or should they be 'misadventures'?!--which are bound to be fascinating in and of themselves."

Huck: "And our vehicle of choice will be this fabulous-looking motorhome--!"

At any rate, opening the door, our intrepid travellers--argonauts, even!--prepare to get things ready and squared away, even finding what will amount to their beds all along the way. Which, in Wally Gator's case, will have to consider his tail and the habit of sleeping on his belly ... and for Squiddly Diddly, having to find a decent tank for which water could be kept to keep him pacified. (Huck and I will, inevitably, "ride shotgun" up front and guide things along the way, swapping turns driving. Hopefully kept alert with some decent coffee, let alone caffeine tablets, No-Doz even, if nighttime driving especially is required.)

"Yet," Boo-Boo was quick to quip, "I have to wonder how the ranger's gonna like our company as it is."

To which Yogi responded, "Fret not, Boo-Boo buddy!"

Trying not to keep things constrained with so much pre-departure folderol which many families heading into a road trip seem to relish, our motley company is settled in and ... off we go occidentally on US 50 as it begins its journey of 3,073 miles (that's 4,948 kilometres, if you prefer it that way) towards Sacramento, California!

But whence will we be heading next? Stay tuned to this channel, fellow Hanna-Barberians!

*************

@warnerbrosentertainment @joey-gatorman @theweekenddigest @haiyis-dark-void @archive-archives @thylordshipofbutts @themineralyoucrave @princessgalaxy505 @screamingtoosoftly @thebigdingle @warnerbros-blog1 @xdiver71 @jellystone-enjoyer @iheartgod175 @warnerbrosent-blog

[sohannabarberaesque]

Hardly the sort of coffee mug Chief Winchley would have in his private office back at Bubbleland, as if the antics of Squiddly Diddly weren’t already giving him headaches (let alone free publicity).

I love you like no otter Coffee Mug by Supreto

[sohannabarberaesque]

Upon seeing this, who could picture Squiddly Diddly playing the old squeezebox (and a reechy-sounding one, besides) at some San Pedro dive bar on Saturday nights, with Chief Winchley unaware of the exercise?

[sohannabarberaesque]

Postcards from Snagglepuss

In a sample room somewhere along the Ocean City Boardwalk

Huckleberry Hound opened this session: "If I may just explain why we're all here ..."

(Those present, besides Huck and yours truly, were Yogi Bear, Boo-Boo and Cindy ... Magilla Gorilla ... Squiddly Diddly ... and Wally Gator.)

To moi: "Having been something of a vagabond for some time now, the idea came about of having a close compadre of mine, as in Huckleberrry Hound, be more or less the co-leader ... and to move things around."

Which had Magilla asking, "You mean, like on a motorhome?"

Huck responded, "You are so correct."

Moi again: "We thought it interesting to take our vagabonding to a new and exciting level by going the motorhome route." Which had Yogi Bear rhapsodising "Well, that certainly beats Jellystone Park, believe you me ... and imagine, at least Ranger Smith isn't much of a pain-in-the-butt!"

(Laughter all around)

Boo-Boo, Yogi's ever-impatient ursine buddy, chimed in: "I do have to acknowledge that Yogi can sometimes get a little ahead of himself, and can be a little silly on occasion." To which Cindy, the romantic interest of Yogi especially (and wearing a low-cut dress as well), added, "I think I'm going to like Yogi a little more from here on out!"

"So where exactly is it that we're heading, as if I had to shoot my big mouth off?" was what Wally Gator asked.

"We are heading out west" was how Huck parsed it.

Added I, "On a mystery tour, you might say."

Squiddly Diddly chimed in with "At least it doesn't involve Bubbleland!"

"Uh, I thought Bubbleland was closed," Huck remarked.

"True," Squiddly Diddly replied, "but the whole is bound to be rather interesting, especially absent Chief Winchley!"

"And, in my own case," Wally Gator added, "Zookeeper Twiddle, don't you know!"

Not long afterward, but not before quite the dinner of Delmarva fried chicken (which is more or less rolled in cracker crumbs, as opposed to that Colonel Sanders schtick of being floured), our crew, with Huck and myself leading the way--and with many startled tourists gawking at us in transit to a municipal parking lot not far from the Boardwalk along Coastal Boulevard--walked over to what would be our mobile bivouac from here on out.

"Now, mind you," Huck remarked as our crew was gathered outside, "you're only joining us for a few weeks. The objective we have in mind is that we plan to have a changing cast of characters, as it were, with the seasons."

"Which," I added, "at any rate, could mean something rather fascinating for what could amount to a quasi-documentary with elements of Survivor, Big Brother even ... but without the vote offs. Yet before long, heading into the summer, many of you will be replaced with some new characters joining the experience."

"Which, I assume," Yogi Bear remarked, "will see us heading back to Jellystone Park just as the summer tourists come along!"

"That's an interesting point of putting it," I remarked. And so, opening the doors to the motorhome, though it took some time settling in, and explaining the amenities to be had (including some old-school card and board games) ... and making our way through what passed for the early-season traffic on Coastal Boulevard, then westward along US 50 as it makes its way for all of 3.073 miles to Sacramento.

Which, for those fond of alternate units of measure, is 4,945 kilometres ... 1,024 leagues ... 2,827 Roman miles ... I guess you get the idea. But from here on out, try and guess where we're heading next!

*************

@warnerbrosentertainment @haiyis-dark-void @jellystone-enjoyer @joey-gatorman @archive-archives @thylordshipofbutts @screamingtoosoftly @princessgalaxy505 @themineralyoucrave @thebigdingle @warnerbros-blog1 @restroom @theweekenddigest @xdiver71 @warnerbrosent-blog

[sohannabarberaesque]

In conversation between Huckleberry Hound and Squiddly Diddly at a Character Convocation some while back

HUCKLEBERRY HOUND, ever the curious one: So what exactly was the trigger behind Bubbleland's demise?

SQUIDDLY DIDDLY: To put it simply, it was Chief Winchley, who founded Bubbleland to begin with and managed to keep it going until, rather suddenly, he didn't show up one morning.

HUCKLEBERRY HOUND: So what was wrong exactly?

SQUIDDLY DIDDLY: You might say his mind was going haywire, what with deferred maintenance being evident throughout the structure as housed Bubbleland, to begin with. Which the animals, yours truly included, didn't quite feel comfortable with; soon after, word was getting around urging tourists to stay away and avoid Bubbleland ... and then one day, it just suddenly closed.

HUCKLEBERRY HOUND: So what happened to Chief Winchley?

SQUIDDLY DIDDLY: He was just losing his mind to the extent of his having to go into an asylum, and rumour claimed that he was blaming me for Bubbleland's demise, single-handedly! Obviously, this was not all true, but still, it was evident that Bubbleland was in decline ... which was quick enough for me to recognise my true calling of being an underwater photographer!

HUCKLEBERRY HOUND: I do have to recognise, judging by your annuals that you put out, that your underwater photography is rather exceptional!

SQUIDDLY DIDDLY: How else could it be for an underwater denizen as is in that gray area between an outright professional and just a rank amateur?

[Laughter on the part of both]

[sohannabarberaesque]

At a diver's bar somewhere in Islamorada, Florida

MAGILLA GORILLA, going through his bowl of conch stew: You know something, Peter?

PETER POTAMUS, who basically arranged this tete-a-tete: What did you have in mind, Magilla?

MAGILLA GORILLA: For the rather decent conch stew they serve here, I have to admit that I couldn't have found a more interesting sideline than diving!

PETER POTAMUS: And it's rather interesting that I enjoy diving myself ... not to mention finding some equally interesting character types along for the dive, so to speak!

MAGILLA GORILLA: Which at least beats wasting time in the front window of Peebles' Pet Shop watching TV or otherwise listening to shortwave radio at its most incredible ...

PETER POTAMUS: Magilla ... if there's one thing our being together as divers means, it's showing the world that SCUBA can play quite the part in building friendships. And credit such exceptional camera work from Squiddly Diddly underwater for proving such a premise ... even if, I have to acknowledge, Squiddly's mastery of underwater photography was self-taught, by and large, coming at him from scratch, you might say, after Bubbleland closed oh so suddenly!

MAGILLA GORILLA: Uh, what was this Bubbleland?

PETER POTAMUS: Not unlike the Miami Seaquarium or SeaWorld, you might say ... but closed rather suddenly after Chief Winchley, its founder, somehow lost his mind and things began collapsing left and right. Which was not very good for anybody there, not even Squiddly--who, more than anything, amounted to more of a novelty act!

MAGILLA GORILLA: Even in the face of dolphins and killer whales being stars of the show, so to speak?

PETER POTAMUS: Well ... you can say that, in a way. (Pause) Come to think of it, perhaps we might want to ask Squiddly to relate his take on Bubbleland's Decline and Fall, so to speak, some evening ahead of a diving session!

MAGILLA GORILLA: I certainly hope he has plenty to say there!

PETER POTAMUS: (Chuckling) Say, Magilla--have you ever seen some of Squiddly's underwater photography? I have to admit he's something of a whiz in this respect!

MAGILLA GORILLA: I admit having seen a few of his photos and watching much of his footage as well ...

PETER POTAMUS: Glad we could have this talk ...

[sohannabarberaesque]

Once more, amongst the World-Renowned and Far-Famed Ten Thousand Lakes of Minnesota--

(Mise en scene, as before: Somewhere in the shallows of said lake, during a filming break in "Underwater America with Peter Potamus" giving the diving party some time to refresh dive basics and safety procedures. This time, we find Squiddly Diddly, underwater photographer extraordinaire, alongside Peter Potamus sitting in an Adirondack chair posited in the shallows as sunset approaches.)

PETER POTAMUS, out of curiosity: Squiddly, just interested in knowing what brought about the demise of Bubbleland...

SQUIDDLY DIDDLY: First off, I should explain that I was not entirely to blame for causing the downfall of Bubbleland such as led to its closing.

PETER POTAMUS: I can understand that, Squiddly.

SQUIDDLY DIDDLY: In fact, you might say it was largely Chief Winchley as brought down Bubbleland.

PETER POTAMUS, incredulous at this revelation: You mean--?

SQUIDDLY DIDDLY: While it may have been my antics as brought its fair share of press attention to Bubbleland, the reality was that Chief Winchley was losing his mind all the more, practically letting Bubbleland go downhill!

PETER POTAMUS: And yet the tourists were still coming?

SQUIDDLY DIDDLY: Make no mistake about it ... and even then, they couldn't notice right offhand where Bubbleland was on the skids. It was just going down to the sea so fast, you might say--

PETER POTAMUS, interjecting: --that it was certain to crash into the sea any day!

SQUIDDLY DIDDLY: And the crash came, you might say, when Chief Winchley didn't show up one morning at the usual time, about an hour and a half before park opening ... it emerged that he had to be taken to hospital all of a sudden in a delirium about Bubbleland's state. Rumour had it that my name was mentioned in Chief Winchley's otherwise incoherent rantings in the ambulance en route, before sedatives were administered.

PETER POTAMUS: So how long exactly did it ensue before Bubbleland closed its gates and released its creatures, as it were?

SQUIDDLY DIDDLY: Barely two weeks at the most ... and when the closing came, it was a sudden shock to all of us, me especially. So where else had we to go other than the wilds of the Pacific, with the risk of rejection among the wilder specimens? At any rate, yours truly was given some compensation for the trouble, which allowed me to get into underwater photography--something of a passion I had long imagined going into!

PETER POTAMUS: Which explains the Nikonos underwater camera you always enjoy carrying....

SQUIDDLY DIDDLY: However did you guess that? (Chuckling)

PETER POTAMUS: Which would naturally evolve into contacts with yours truly--

SQUIDDLY DIDDLY: --and picking up on underwater cinematography, explaining my presence as the underwater cameraman on this series!

PETER POTAMUS: For which you deserve some serious commendation, make no mistake about it!

SQUIDDLY DIDDLY: At any rate ... let's head over to my cabin in a little bit and look at some examples of my underwater photography, good, bad and indifferent!

PETER POTAMUS, chuckling: Not a bad idea ... especially where you said "good, bad and indifferent" just now there....

[sohannabarberaesque]

Hardly a serious replication of the performance stage at Bubbleland back in its zenith, especially with Squiddly Diddly seeking to “steal the show” to the chagrin of Chief Winchley.